Andre finds a new way to get to Hope
At the Horton house, Chad tried to convince Abigail to elope with him, pointing out that he didn't really have anyone to invite to a big wedding in Salem, anyway -- and her family wasn't exactly going to be begging for the opportunity to watch her marry a DiMera. Chad added that he and Abigail could go on an extended honeymoon with the money they had been planning to spend on the wedding, giving the renovators plenty of time to redo the DiMera mansion while they were out of town.
Abigail protested that weddings were a big deal in her family, and although she didn't need anything fancy, she did need to believe that it would be possible for her family to accept Chad and happily support them on the day they exchanged their vows. "I understand, but I am terrified that if we stay in Salem and Andre has his way, there won't be a wedding," Chad admitted. Abigail wondered if Chad was eager to elope because he feared that if he stayed in Salem long enough, he might eventually start to believe Andre's theory about Hope.
In Maui, Steve grew frustrated after the latest in a series of failed attempts to contact Joey. Ava impatiently told Steve to focus on finding their son, assuring him that Kayla had undoubtedly been rescued already because Joey had been told exactly where to find her. Steve stressed that he wanted to find Ava's child just as much as she did -- if only because doing so would allow him to return to Salem and reunite with Kayla and Joey. Steve wasn't ready to stop trying to reach his family, though, so he handed Ava her cell phone and told her to try getting in touch with their contact as a way of making herself useful in the meantime.
At the hospital, Fynn told Kayla she was lucky that her fall hadn't resulted in a skull fracture or any other serious injuries. Fynn wanted to do an MRI of Kayla's cervical spine as a precaution, but she insisted that wasn't necessary because she wasn't experiencing any troubling symptoms. Fynn agreed to release Kayla after she promised that she would return to the hospital at the first sign of a concussion.
After Fynn went to get Kayla's discharge papers, Joey wondered why she had lied about what had happened to her. Kayla explained that Fynn would have been obliged to contact the police if she had told him the truth, and she didn't want to get anyone else involved until she was sure that Steve was all right. Joey felt responsible for what had happened, but Kayla assured him that Ava would have just found some other way to get to them if her plan to use Joey had failed.
Kayla wondered how Joey had managed to find her. Joey claimed that he had broken into Ava's room, gone through her things, and discovered a receipt to a basement office she had rented -- which had seemed odd to him because she didn't have a job. Joey added that he had decided to check the place out on his own after failing to get in touch with Steve. "How did you even know how to --" Kayla began to ask. "I guess I learned a lot from Dad," Joey replied before Kayla managed to finish the question. Joey rushed off after adding that he was going to see if he could snag a cab downstairs. In the hallway, Joey wiped his brow and exhaled nervously.
Later that day, Joey returned home with Kayla and quickly began trying to tend to her every need so she wouldn't overexert herself. Kayla assured Joey that she was fine and didn't need to be taken care of, adding that she was more worried about Steve than herself. "Dad can take care of himself," Joey stated with a hint of bitterness.
Kayla left the room for a moment, and while she was gone, Joey received a phone call from Steve. "What?" Joey asked Steve in lieu of a proper greeting. Steve wondered if Kayla was all right. "Yeah, she's fine. Took you long enough to call," Joey angrily replied. Steve explained that he had been trying to get in touch with Joey for the past few hours. "Don't pretend you care," Joey snapped. Steve insisted that he did care, and he promised that when he returned home, he would explain why Joey had caught him kissing Ava earlier.
"You can't [explain]. Don't come home. I don't want you here -- and neither does Mom," Joey spat -- just as Kayla reentered the room. Kayla grabbed Joey's cell phone and greeted Steve, who informed her that he was out of the country at that time, trying to track down Ava's son. Kayla vowed to press charges against Ava and have her sent to jail for a very long time, and when Steve didn't respond, Kayla demanded to know if he was with Ava. Steve dodged the question, ending the call after promising that he would explain everything as soon as he got back to Salem.
Kayla called Roman and left him a voicemail message, explaining that Steve might be in danger -- and that she wanted to press charges against Ava. After ending the call, Kayla wondered why Joey was upset with Steve. "He took off on a plane while you were kidnapped, for God's sake!" Joey pointed out, but Kayla suspected that there was more to the story. Kayla urged Joey to tell her the whole truth right away, reminding him that things hadn't worked out very well the last time he had kept information about Ava to himself. Insisting that he had already told Kayla everything he knew, Joey rushed off to his room after advising her to get some rest.
After ending a phone call, Ava wrapped her arms around Steve as she announced that someone was being sent to the hotel to give them some information about their son. Steve shoved Ava off him and warned her to never touch him like that again. "I hate you. You disgust me. Why don't you get that through your head, you crazy woman?" Steve added, prompting Ava to complain that he was being cruel.
Steve asked if Ava expected him to thank her for blackmailing him into having sex with her in exchange for Kayla's freedom. "Well, you know what, you seemed pretty virile for a man who [claims he hated] every minute of it," Ava countered. Steve insisted that he had done what had been necessary in order to save Kayla, but Ava guessed that Kayla might not see it that way, especially since Joey had walked in on them together.
Before Steve could respond, someone arrived with information about Ava's child. After Steve handed over a wad of cash, the man revealed that five babies had been bought during the timeframe that Steve was asking about -- but only two had been Caucasian, and they had both died of pneumonia within weeks of being purchased. The man produced photographs of the two deceased babies, and Ava was devastated when she recognized one of them as her own.
The man left after offering his condolences. "Could have been mine...but maybe not. [Either way], there's nothing tying us together now," Steve pointed out as Ava sobbed uncontrollably. Steve grabbed his stuff and exited the hotel room after adding that he never wanted to see Ava in Salem again. Ava sank to the floor in despair, clutching the photograph against her chest as she continued weeping.
At Club TBD, Lani ran into Abe and agreed to join him for coffee. Abe said he was sorry he hadn't been able to spend much time with Lani lately, and she assured him that it was fine because she had been pretty busy herself due to Hope's sudden departure from the police force. Abe wondered if things were going well at work. "Mostly, yeah," Lani replied, and when Abe prompted her to elaborate, she explained that everyone missed Hope -- and the Malcolm shooting had affected morale. "I mean, we all know it was self-defense, but...Rafe and Hope were a good team, and now he's..." Lani began to add before letting her voice trail off.
"Please don't take this the wrong way. I adore Rafe, and he's been a terrific mentor to me. But...he's been out a lot lately. And I know he's worried about Hope. I'm just afraid... I'm afraid he's in trouble," Lani hesitantly continued. Lani quickly backpedaled and admitted that she shouldn't have said anything, but after Abe assured her that anything she told him would remain between them, she explained that Rafe had seemed really preoccupied lately. Lani knew that Rafe had been given a second chance on the police force after covering up a crime, and she doubted that he would ever step out of line again.
"But Hope would, and that's what's got you worried," Abe guessed. Lani wondered if Abe suspected that Hope had done something that they weren't yet aware of. Unsure, Abe revealed that Hope was convinced that Stefano had caused Bo's death. Abe added that Stefano had recently left town without saying goodbye to Theo. "If there's one good thing I can say about the man, it's that he loves his grandson. This isn't like him," Abe mused. Abe concluded that, while Stefano's disappearance would be welcome news for practically everyone in Salem, he wouldn't be able to look the other way if he learned that either Hope or Rafe had caused it.
At the DiMera mansion, Rafe dismissed Andre's suspicions about Hope's involvement in Stefano's disappearance, insisting that Andre was just suffering from paranoid delusions and didn't have any real proof to back up his claims. "Don't I?" Andre replied, stroking his chin with his pinky finger to show off the Phoenix ring he was wearing. Rafe remained calm and warned Andre to stay away from Hope.
Andre mused that Rafe hadn't learned his lesson the last time he had covered up a crime to protect someone. "Are you so infatuated with Hope that you've lost any kind of remorse or duty to law?" Andre asked. Rafe scoffed at the idea of getting a lecture from Andre, of all people, about love, remorse, and the law. "Well, I was criminally insane. What's your excuse?" Andre countered.
Andre taunted Rafe, guessing that he hadn't gotten anything in exchange for the sacrifices he had made for Hope. "Has [she] hinted even a little bit of affection, or even a romp in her late husbands' bed -- husbands, plural?" Andre asked. Rafe lost his temper but quickly regained his composure, refusing to react to the remark in any way that would give Andre ammunition to use against him. "You just don't have the guts -- unlike Hope, [who] didn't even bat an eye when she took Bo's gun and placed it on my father's chest [then] shot him dead!" Andre spat. Rafe calmly said goodbye to Andre and showed himself out.
At Hope's house, Hope joined Ciara and Chase in the living room and suggested that they could heat up some popcorn and start a marathon of classic John Hughes films. Ciara suggested starting the marathon with The Breakfast Club. "It'd be like real life -- everyone stuck in a room against their own will," Ciara dryly reasoned. "With someone they can't stand," Chase added, but Ciara protested that he was putting words in her mouth.
Hope pointed out that Ciara and Chase had gotten to leave the house to see Theo earlier, and she wondered how that had gone. Chase explained that Theo hadn't been able to accept his apology. Chase admitted that he could understand why, since not even Ciara could forgive him. Ciara reminded Chase that she had tried to convince Theo to give him another chance. "Well, I don't need you to fight my battles!" Chase snapped. "I shouldn't have to fight your battles! Theo's not even answering my texts anymore, and you bolted when we were talking, which made you look even more like a jerk!" Ciara angrily countered.
Hope intervened and insisted that Ciara and Chase needed to find a way to work things out with each other. Hope went to take a phone call, leaving Ciara and Chase alone in the living room. Chase offered Ciara another apology, stressing that what he had done hadn't even really been about Theo in the first place. Chase explained that he had simply been angry, and Ciara conceded that he had a right to feel that way after everything that he had been through lately. Ciara added that she had done a lot of stupid things herself in the past. Ciara continued that she was just worried about Theo because he had been ignoring her text messages.
Ciara turned to leave, planning to look for Theo, but Hope returned and stopped her. Hope asked Chase to give her a minute alone with Ciara, and after he left, she advised Ciara that Theo probably just needed some time to himself. Ciara protested that she simply wanted to make sure that Theo was okay. "And I need to know that you're okay," Hope countered. Hope reminded Ciara that the DiMeras were dangerous, but Ciara maintained that she needed to find Theo right away because it was never a good sign when he suddenly went silent. Hope reluctantly agreed to let Ciara leave the house for one hour -- with a guard following her at all times.
After Ciara left, Hope went to retrieve Bo's gun from its lockbox -- and was shocked to discover that it wasn't there. Hope called Rafe over, and he told her about his earlier conversation with Andre. Hope started to panic when she realized that Andre really had found Stefano's body in the abandoned warehouse -- and had also stolen the murder weapon while she and Rafe had been with the kids at the Horton cabin.
As Hope and Rafe continued discussing the matter, Andre watched via a surveillance camera he had hidden in Hope's house. Andre was upset because the camera wasn't transmitting audio for some reason, but he noticed that Chase was on the staircase, listening to Hope and Rafe's conversation.
Theo finally answered one of Ciara's text messages and agreed to meet her in the town square. Ciara assured Theo that Chase's actions had stemmed from a place of anger and hadn't really had anything to do with Theo at all. Theo agreed but guessed that Chase's actions had actually been the result of his feelings for Ciara. Theo predicted that things weren't going to get better between him and Chase anytime soon, since Chase still liked Ciara. "And so do I," Theo admitted, although he was quick to stress that he knew that Ciara didn't feel the same way about him. Theo assured Ciara that they would always be friends.
After catching Ciara with Theo, Chase went to a secluded section of the town square to be alone. "Well, hello, son. Hmm. You look like you could use a friend," Andre observed as he approached Chase.
In the park, Belle ran into a moody Claire. When Belle asked what had happened at the audition, Claire said she had been cut by the panel. Claire explained that the panel had said that she had promise and should apply the following year. Belle told her daughter to be encouraged by the panel's comments. When Belle asked about Eve, Claire admitted that she had left the audition and gone straight to the airport.
Upset, Belle noted that Eve would be worried. Claire said that she had texted Eve to inform her that she had flown home. With her gaze at her feet, Claire added that she had told Eve that she had bailed on the audition because she had been too embarrassed to say that her audition had gone poorly. Belle told Claire there was no shame in being cut.
At the police station, Shawn and Lani were discussing a case when Fynn interrupted them. Seeking an officer to investigate a break-in at his apartment, Fynn asked Shawn for help. Shawn noted that he was in forensics and that Fynn should talk to Detective Price. Lani raised her hand. Fynn apologized for assuming that Lani was not an officer. With a shrug, Lani asked Fynn what items had been taken. Fynn noted that his camera had sensitive videos of him with women. Nodding, Lani told Fynn to call the women in the photos.
After Lani went into the conference room, Fynn asked Shawn if he had talked to the woman that had hurt him. Shawn said he had spoken to his wife but that it had not gone well. When Fynn asked Shawn if he had told his wife how he felt about her, Shawn nodded and said that it had not made a difference. As Shawn talked about acting cordial, Belle entered the police station and interrupted Shawn and Fynn's conversation. Belle asked Shawn why he was at the station. As Shawn explained that he worked there, Fynn excused himself to meet up with Lani in the conference room. On his way out, Fynn gave Shawn a smile and a thumbs-up.
Shawn told Belle that he had moved back to Salem for good. As Claire's mouth fell open, Shawn asked her if she had a problem with his decision. Belle said she was glad that Shawn was staying in Salem. Encouraged, Shawn said that they had time to figure out their relationship. Belle clarified that she was happy that Shawn was in town for Claire. Belle added that Claire was upset about her Juilliard audition.
"She needs a shoulder to cry on, and she made it very clear she doesn't want it to be mine," Belle said. Shawn started to suggest that Belle should be around more, and Belle scoffed at the idea. Unfazed, Shawn said that Belle should get rid of Philip and focus on her daughter. Belle reminded Shawn that he had filed for divorce. With a sigh, Shawn said he did not want to fight. Lani interrupted to ask for a forensics report. As Belle turned to leave, Shawn told Belle that she should not give up on reaching out to Claire because Claire needed her.
In the conference room, Lani took Fynn's statement about the items taken from his apartment. When Lani asked Fynn if one of his girlfriends could have taken the items, a smiling Fynn asked Lani if she wanted to join him for a drink to talk about her theory. Lani declined.
At the Kiriakis mansion, a worried Victor asked Caroline why her luggage was in the foyer. Caroline explained that she wanted to move back to the pub. Victor objected, but Caroline was adamant that she was healthy. Caroline stressed that she wanted to be back at the pub. Worried, Victor said that it was not safe for Caroline to leave the mansion. Victor said he wanted to learn more about the serum before he let Caroline leave. Victor pleaded with Caroline to stay to help him refine the serum.
As Caroline protested, Maggie entered the living room and asked about Caroline's luggage. Caroline asked Maggie to help her convince Victor that she should move out. Maggie sided with Victor. With a smile, Maggie told Caroline that she was a joy to have around the house. Caroline agreed to stay one more night. After Caroline went upstairs, Victor thanked Maggie for her help. Maggie asked Victor to tell her what was wrong. Victor confided that he was worried about Deimos. Victor explained that Deimos was plotting, and he was not sure what Deimos was planning.
At Club TBD, Kate talked to Philip about the changes at Basic Black. Philip was worried that Kate had partnered with Deimos, but Kate assured her son that she was running the business by herself. Philip said that Deimos was bad news. Suspicious, Kate asked Philip what he knew about Deimos. When Philip mentioned that Deimos had been in prison, Kate nodded and said that Deimos had been innocent. When Kate pushed Philip to open up to her, Philip left for a meeting. Kate wondered aloud what Philip was hiding.
In his hotel room, Deimos left a voicemail warning Philip to call him back. Deimos added that Philip should be more fearful of him than of Victor. When Philip arrived, he asked why Deimos was snooping around Kate. Deimos said he wanted to invest in Basic Black. Philip ordered Deimos to leave Kate and Victor alone. With narrowed eyes, Deimos asked Philip for the documents he requested. Reluctantly, Philip handed a folder to Deimos. Philip explained that the file contained accounts for all of Victor's money. Deimos threw the file in the trash, and he stressed that Philip knew what he really wanted.
Philip yelled that he could not help Deimos obtain the cure for Topits disease. Philip told Deimos all the things he had done to obtain the cure but that he had been unsuccessful in securing the cure. Disgusted, Deimos told Philip that he was no longer any use to him. Deimos said he would not report Philip to the Chicago police because the blackmail had just been a part of his plan.
"Sadly, Victor's own son was willing to betray him to save his own skin," Deimos said. With dawning horror, Philip begged Deimos not to tell Victor. Deimos said he wanted to break Victor's heart.
In the town square, Fynn talked to a photo of Daniel at his memorial. Fynn joked that he was losing his touch with women, since Lani had turned him down. As Fynn turned to leave, he ran into Claire, causing her to drop her bag on the ground. Fynn apologized. As Fynn picked up Claire's bag, he saw the nametag on her luggage, and he asked her if she was Shawn's daughter. Fynn told Claire he was friends with her dad. Seeing the tears on her face, Fynn told Claire that if she was upset, Shawn would want to know. Claire thanked Fynn for the suggestion.
As Fynn turned to leave, Claire asked him if he had known Daniel. Fynn explained that Daniel had been his best friend. Shaking his head, Fynn said life was short. Claire talked to Fynn about her parents. Nearby, Shawn eavesdropped. Fynn's pager beeped. Before leaving, Fynn encouraged Claire to talk to her father. With a smile, Fynn told Claire to "hang in there." As Claire turned, she spotted Shawn.
Furious, Claire asked Shawn if he had told Fynn to talk to her. Shawn said Belle had told him about New York. As Claire groaned, Shawn told Claire that she was talented and that they would find her another school. Feeling better, Claire hugged her dad. Shawn walked Claire to the station and showed her around. Claire told Shawn that she was excited he had decided to move back to Salem.
"I'm thrilled that you're staying here in Salem and so is your mom," Shawn said. As Claire dropped her eyes, Shawn asked Claire to cut Belle some slack. Reluctantly, Claire promised to make an effort with Belle.
At Club TBD, Belle sipped a glass of wine and took her wedding band off. Belle replaced the ring with a gaudy new one. Shawn entered the bar and watched Belle from across the room. As Shawn approached Belle, he asked her if she had a new ring. Belle commented that she had seen the ring in a store and had bought it. Shawn noted that the ring looked expensive. Defensive, Belle said that she could do whatever she wanted with the money. Confused, Shawn asked Belle what money she was talking about.
Across the bar, Kate and Deimos talked over drinks. Deimos noted that Philip was protective of Kate. With a smirk, Kate said that no one told her what to do. When Deimos asked what had changed, Kate explained that she felt their partnership was moving too quickly. Deimos suggested that he and Kate go out on a date. Kate said she was tired of men that did not want to tell her their secrets. With a raised eyebrow, Deimos noted that he had already told Kate about his imprisonment. Kate nodded.
At the Kiriakis mansion, a panicked Philip raced into the house, looking for his father. Philip found him in the living room. "What the hell is this about?" Victor said.
In their apartment, Theresa prepared for Brady and Nicole's financial meeting. When Brady asked if Theresa was staying in the apartment because she was worried about Brady and Nicole's closeness, Theresa smiled sheepishly. Brady told Theresa not to worry. Brady added that as partners in a company, the three of them would need to spend time together. Theresa admitted that she was feeling weird about Brady's dreams and feelings about Nicole.
Brady assured Theresa that he was feeling better and anxious to get back to work. Theresa asked Brady to take it easy. Brady joked that Women's Weekly suggested that he pick up a hobby. As Theresa giggled, Brady retrieved a blue ukulele from the bedroom. Brady noted that he had taken two online classes. With a smile, Brady sang a song to Theresa while he played his ukulele.
Theresa swooned, and she kissed Brady. As the kisses grew more heated, Brady and Theresa started to undress one another. Suddenly, Brady pulled away and grabbed his chest. Worried, Theresa grabbed her phone and called Fynn. When Fynn arrived, he examined Brady and stated that Brady was healthy. Fynn noted that pain was normal. When Fynn added that Brady should avoid exertion, Brady asked what that meant. Fynn looked over at Theresa, who smiled and blushed.
"Whatever you were doing when the pain came on," Fynn said with a grin. Fynn told the couple to wait a little longer before doing anything. Theresa promised that they would take care of Daniel's heart. Theresa urged Brady to nap on the couch, and she postponed his meeting with Nicole. While Theresa tucked a blanket around Brady, he asked her to play his ukulele. Smiling, Theresa played Brady's ukulele and sang the same song back to him. Brady sang along as he drifted off to sleep.
In Chad's room at the bed and breakfast, Abigail and Chad looked at pictures of Thomas. Chad pensively noted that he would do everything possible to make sure Thomas was always happy. When Chad mentioned having the perfect place for all of them to live, Abigail admitted that she didn't believe that Andre and Stefano would really stay away once Chad bought the house. Chad started to argue his case again but stopped and said that, instead of discussing the DiMera family, he would rather talk about his family with Abigail. Abigail agreeably kissed him.
After she fell asleep, Abigail awakened and found Chad giving Thomas a bottle. Chad said quietly that he and Thomas were having some "man-to-man time" and encouraged Abigail to go back to sleep. She curled up under the covers and pretended to sleep. In a soft voice, Chad told Thomas a story about an evil king and his two sons, one of whom was trying to be a good man, but the other son was as evil as the king.
The story ended with the good prince resisting the evil prince's influence because of the love of a woman from the village. "So, together, they fought back against the evil prince and won. And to this day, he's happy, at peace, and so in love with her and their beautiful son," the story concluded. As Chad was putting Thomas in his crib, Abigail tiptoed out of bed and told Chad that his story had been beautiful. She declared that she couldn't wait to marry Chad. "Let's go somewhere, just you and me and Thomas. Let's elope -- let's go to Paris, just like you said, okay? I want to marry you as soon as I can," Abigail announced quietly but excitedly.
At Club TBD, Shawn questioned Belle about the expensive ring she'd purchased for herself. Belle bristled, grousing that she was making a good living, and Shawn had no right to interrogate her. Shawn quietly stated that he loved Belle and was just concerned about her choices. He offered to help Belle if she'd done something shady. Belle irritably asserted that she could take care of herself -- without Shawn's attitude. Belle stormed out.
Lani appeared and asked if Shawn wanted company. "Sure," Shawn mumbled gloomily. As the two talked about Lani's promotion, Shawn cautioned her not to bury herself in work, as he'd done, because he'd lost his family because of it.
At the Kiriakis mansion, while Victor was upbraiding Philip for allowing Titan's biggest competitor to take over another company, Deimos arrived. Philip urged his father not to believe a word Deimos said, but Deimos contended that Philip had been working for him. Deimos informed Victor about the girl overdosing in Philip's hotel room, and because Deimos had gotten Philip out of the jam, Philip was in Deimos' debt -- which was why Philip had agreed to return to Salem and spy on his father. Victor turned to Philip and angrily demanded, "Is it true?" Philip confirmed that it was.
Victor ordered Deimos, "Get the hell out of my house. Next time I see you is going to be at your funeral -- which may be sooner than you think." As Deimos strolled out, he urged Victor, "Go gentle on my nephew." Philip offered to explain what had happened, but Victor cut him off. "There is no explanation! I brought you here, I put you in charge of Titan -- a business I spent a lifetime building -- and you betray me. You betray me!" Victor seethed, unable to contain his fury.
Philip admitted that he'd screwed up, but Victor declared, "This is Philip following a pattern. Everything I've given you, you've thrown away -- over and over again. Well, no more. You're fired." Victor continued that he didn't know how to handle the personal side of their problems, but it would have to wait until another day. "Dad, I love you," Philip said earnestly. "Good for you. Get out," Victor growled. Crushed, Philip obeyed.
Later, Belle found Philip moping in the park and asked what was wrong. Philip explained that Deimos had told Victor everything before Philip could explain. "He hates me now," Philip concluded bleakly. Belle reassured Philip, "He's going to come around," but Philip didn't think so. "I bet this was Deimos' plan right from the start. He just wanted to break me. He wanted to do it in front of my dad, to hurt him, too," Philip speculated. He added that he'd seen the look in Victor's eyes and would continue to see it for the rest of his life.
On the phone at the Kiriakis mansion, Victor said, "I have a problem that I need to go away -- permanently." He reflected on his conversations with his brother since Deimos had arrived in Salem. Meanwhile, Deimos sat on the bed in his hotel room, flipping through the pictures of Victor's loved ones. As he picked up the photo of Philip and ripped it into pieces, he said, "And so it begins."
Eduardo was alone at Club TBD, drinking wine, when Rafe arrived. Eduardo said he'd discovered the wine during the worst year of his life, and it had always reminded him that great things could happen if one were patient and willing to change. Rafe took a sip when Eduardo offered and sat down with his father when Eduardo invited him. As the men sipped Merlot, Eduardo asked about Rafe's mother. Rafe said she was in Monterrey, caring for his ill Tía Estrella.
Gabi breezed in after a photo shoot and voiced her surprise that Rafe and Eduardo were drinking together. Eduardo invited her to join them and have dinner with them. Eduardo asked Gabi about Dario, and she said he'd been working for Titan Industries in Argentina, but she thought he might have resigned. Rafe discouraged his father from trying to contact Dario, who had been stuck looking after their mother after Eduardo had left them.
When Gabi stepped away to call her sitter, Eduardo asked if something were troubling Rafe -- like a woman. Rafe found it amusing that Eduardo wanted to give him advice about women -- but he appreciated the gesture and the shared meal. Rafe lightly cautioned Eduardo, "But just so you know, what you want, it's still a hell of a long way off." Eduardo sloshed the rest of the bottle of wine into their glasses.
Gabi returned and apologetically announced that she had to leave to help put Arianna to sleep. Eduardo declared that he was very proud of how Gabi was raising her daughter. As Eduardo paid the tab, he advised Rafe, "I let what I thought was important -- my job -- ruin my life. So, whoever it is that you're worried about, reach out. Don't wait." After Eduardo left, Rafe sat back down and looked contemplatively at his phone.
Andre took Chase to the park outside Horton Square so they could talk and Chase could eat the food that Andre had bought for him. When Chase pointed out that the wound on Andre's face was bleeding, Andre was impressed that his injury didn't repulse Chase even a little bit. "I'm going to make an assumption, that you, in your young age, have had your share of darkness," Andre mused. When Andre asked, Chase confirmed that he knew who Andre was, adding, "Hope says you want to hurt us all."
Andre was surprised that Hope hadn't given her children an early curfew. Chase explained that Hope had guards watching the house, although he was more like a houseguest. Andre chortled when Chase said he'd managed to slip past the guards. "You and I, we have something in common... We don't like to be told how to behave," Andre said, laughing harder. Andre remarked that it had to be hard for Chase to live with his stepmother in the home of the man who'd killed Chase's father -- but at least Chase got to see "the lovely Ciara" every day.
Chase didn't think Ciara would ever return his feelings, but Andre assured the boy that things could change. "Not for me... I'm just like my dad. I can promise, and I can try really, really hard, but something happens and I hurt people," Chase said. Andre suggested that Chase only hurt people who'd hurt him. Chase wondered why Andre was being so nice to him. Andre explained that when he had been younger, he'd been alone and misunderstood, and he'd wished for someone to talk to.
"That's why, if you need someone that you want to confide in, someone who will not judge you, that person is me. Call me," Andre encouraged Chase with seeming kindness. Andre programmed his number into Chase's phone and urged the boy to call if he ever needed to talk. "It's good to have a friend," Chase admitted. Andre pointed out that Hope hated him, so Chase shouldn't tell her or Ciara that he and Andre had talked. As Chase started to head back to the house, he almost left his backpack behind, but Andre stopped him to return it.
Andre returned to the DiMera mansion and examined his wound, which had started bleeding again. As he dabbed at the blood with a handkerchief, he muttered, "You did this, you bitch. What you did to my family... I hope you're saying your prayers tonight, Hope, because you're going to find out what hell is all about."
Hope was dozing on the couch, having a nightmare about Andre holding a knife to Ciara's throat. Hope awakened with a loud, terrified gasp. Ciara heard her mom and went into the living room to ask if Hope were all right. Hope said she'd just had a bad dream but couldn't recall what it had been about. While Ciara and Hope got ready to play poker, Ciara confided that Theo had told her that he had feelings for her.
Ciara surprised Hope by adding that Chase also liked her, and Ciara knew that if she started dating anyone, it would really bother Chase. Ciara admitted that she had no idea what to do about Theo. Hope recommended, "Never do anything that doesn't feel completely right, honey. And you know what? Don't be afraid to wait and take your time." Ciara beat her mom at their sixth game of poker and proclaimed that Hope owed her thirty bucks.
Chase walked in the front door just then, and Hope demanded to know where he'd gone and why. Chase insisted that he'd just wanted some fresh air and didn't understand why Hope was so upset. "You're not my mom! I don't need you worrying about me or telling me I need to be scared all the time. I can take care of myself. I'm here, I'm fine, so back off!" Chase declared defiantly before tossing his backpack on the floor and heading upstairs.
Ciara promised to keep an ear out for Chase in case he decided to leave again. "You seem kind of upset now -- so why don't you call Rafe? He always seems to calm you down," Ciara suggested. She hugged Hope and went upstairs. Hope got out her phone and stared at the screen for a moment.
Rafe was at the police station, trying to work, but he kept sleepily rubbing his eyes and nearly nodded off. He fantasized that Hope showed up and kissed him. Lani arrived and snapped Rafe out of his reverie. She encouraged him to leave the files until morning. After Lani walked away, Rafe got a text message from Hope, letting him know that everyone at her house was in bed and that she would see him the next day. Rafe switched off his desk lamp and left.
In Chase's backpack in Hope's living room, his cell phone began to ring. Suddenly, the pack caught fire, burning quickly and hotly, the flames licking up the wall, nearly to the ceiling.
Steve sneaked into the Johnson house in the middle of the night, hoping to avoid waking Kayla and Joey, but he bumped into a lamp as he tried to navigate his way through the darkened living room. The noise roused Kayla, who had been sleeping on the couch.
Kayla was thrilled to see Steve, but as they exchanged information about what they had each been through during their separation, she quickly deduced that he was keeping something from her -- and that it probably had something to do with why Joey had recently started acting distant. Steve tried to dismiss Kayla's concerns, but she insisted that she didn't need to be protected from the truth.
Kayla guessed that Ava had been with Steve when he had learned that Ava's baby had died, and he reluctantly confirmed the suspicion. Kayla wanted to call Roman and get him to arrest Ava the second she returned to Salem, but Steve was hopeful that Ava wouldn't return. Steve admitted that he had wanted to kill Ava for hurting Kayla but had resisted the urge because he wouldn't have known where to find Kayla without Ava's help. Kayla told Steve that her ordeal had made her even more certain that they belonged together. Kayla thought that was a silver lining to the ordeal, but Steve strongly disagreed with her reasoning.
"There's no positive spin [to this]! That woman is poison! God, I hate her. I hate her for what she tried to do to us," Steve angrily insisted. Kayla suggested that she and Steve just needed to be grateful that they were together and all right. Steve confirmed that he was grateful, but he added that he regretted letting his guard down. "This is my fault. It's on me that Ava stayed. You tried to warn me. I wanted to think that she'd changed and that she was repentant, [but] it was all a pack of lies -- even the leukemia," Steve added.
"That woman is out of her damn mind!" Kayla declared in outrage after Steve told her about the lengths that Ava had gone to in order to convince them that she had developed leukemia. Steve agreed but admitted that, while he had every reason to suspect that Ava had also been lying about him being the father of her child, he couldn't help feeling a sense of loss regardless. Meanwhile, Steve received a text message from Ava -- "I regret putting you through this journey only to have it end in tragedy. I'm devastated and can hardly breathe. I have to go away and grieve for our child. You won't see me again, Steve. Goodbye. Tell Kayla and Joey I'm sorry."
Steve told Kayla that he didn't believe a single word of the text message. Joey soon entered the room, having heard voices, and was surprised to find that Steve had returned home. Steve hugged Joey as Kayla excused herself to answer a call from the hospital. "Don't touch me ever again," Joey quietly warned Steve after Kayla left the room. Steve tried to explain why Joey had caught him with Ava, but Joey wasn't interested in hearing Steve's explanation. "I know what I saw. You betrayed my mom," Joey insisted.
As Steve protested that Joey didn't know the whole story, Kayla returned and assured Joey that there was no need to be upset with Steve because he had already told her the truth about what had happened with Ava. Steve jumped in and elaborated that he had told Kayla that he had been forced to go out of town with Ava. Kayla added that she understood that Steve had done what had been necessary to save her life. "Yeah. I bet he did," Joey bitterly agreed before excusing himself so he could make a sandwich. Meanwhile, alone in a hotel room that she had angrily trashed while grieving the loss of her child, Ava booked a one-way flight to Salem.
At John and Marlena's townhouse, Marlena found John sitting in the living room, sorting through the box of items that, according to Maude, had once belonged to his father, Tim Robicheaux. Marlena wondered what John had learned about his father. John explained that Tim had apparently been everything that Maude had never been. "He grew up poor [and] pulled himself up from nothing [to] form his own business. Never made any money, but he was charitable and well-respected in his community of Baton Rouge," John added, reciting things that he had learned from newspaper clippings he had found inside the box.
John wondered what his life would have been like if Tim had survived combat and returned to Baton Rouge to raise him with Maude. Marlena pointed out that if that had happened, she and John might have never crossed paths with each other. "Well, when you put it that way...hell, I wouldn't change a damn thing," John conceded with a laugh. John preferred to think, however, that fate would have placed him and Marlena in the same orbit either way, and Marlena agreed that she liked that idea.
Marlena wondered if finding out about Maude and Tim had left John ready to put the past behind him and move on with life. "Not quite," John admitted, explaining that he still wanted to put a stop to the organization that had turned him and Eduardo into trained assassins. Marlena refused to let John take on that particular battle, insisting that she wasn't willing to risk losing him in the process. John argued that he wouldn't be the man Marlena had fallen in love with if he just washed his hands of the problem, but Marlena warned that his attempt to appease her wasn't going to work.
"Look, I admire that you want to do what's right [and] follow through with that, but as far as taking on this shady agency with no help [and] no backup? That is sheer madness," Marlena added. John countered that it would be madness to allow other people to suffer instead of using his training and experience to help put a stop to the organization's reign of terror for good. John hugged Marlena and assured her that he would be fine -- and that nothing could ever separate them.
At the DiMera mansion, Andre listened to Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" while watching, via his hidden surveillance camera, the fire that was raging at Hope's house. Blaring smoke alarms awoke Hope, Ciara, and Chase, who each rushed downstairs and panicked when they saw the flames. Chase grabbed a loose rug, planning to use it to put out the fire, but Hope stopped him and instead fought the problem with a fire extinguisher. Meanwhile, Ciara dialed 9-1-1 to report the emergency. Hope told Ciara and Chase to leave the house, but they ignored her request and watched as she finished putting out the fire.
Chase guessed that a short in an electrical outlet had caused the fire. Hope seemed skeptical but offered that explanation to the firefighters when they arrived. One of the firefighters told Hope that it would be best for her to stay somewhere else for the rest of the night, just to be safe. Hope contacted Jennifer, who groggily agreed to let Hope and the kids stay at the Horton house. Jennifer hid her pain medication before Hope, Ciara, and Chase arrived, and she tried to hide her discomfort as they told her about what had happened. Hope noticed, however, that Jennifer seemed exhausted, so Jennifer admitted that she hadn't been sleeping well lately.
After Ciara and Chase went upstairs to get settled, Hope excused herself, explaining to Jennifer that she needed to go back home and find out what the firefighters had determined after their inspection of the property. Outside, Hope contacted Rafe and told him to meet her at her place. "I think Andre finally struck back," Hope added before ending the call. Meanwhile, Jennifer discreetly retrieved her pain medication as Ciara and Chase rejoined her in the living room. After the kids assured her that they didn't need anything, Jennifer excused herself, admitting that she was exhausted and needed to get some rest.
Although Ciara had praised Chase's bravery on two separate occasions since the fire had been extinguished, he guessed, based on the way she was distancing herself from him, that she thought he had started the fire himself. Ciara hesitantly denied the suspicion, but when Chase observed that it had taken her a while to respond, she admitted that the thought had crossed her mind.
Ciara reminded Chase that she had once found him throwing matches at a bloodstained rug in an effort to burn away the reminder of what his father had done. Nodding, Chase conceded that, between that and the things he had done to Theo, it wasn't surprising that Ciara could no longer trust him. Ciara stressed that she wanted to trust Chase. Ciara added that she didn't think that Chase would have intentionally started a fire in an effort to destroy something or hurt someone, but she had wondered if he might have started one so he could bravely attempt to put it out himself -- and hopefully make her see him differently in the process.
Chase was shocked to hear that Ciara thought he was capable of such a thing. "You think I'm nuts, don't you? Sadistic. Cruel. You think I'm out of my mind, just like my father," Chase guessed. Ciara tried to deny the suspicion, but Chase refused to listen, grabbing his stuff while concluding that it would be best for him to leave because he didn't need Ciara or her family, and they obviously didn't want him around, anyway.
Ciara protested that Chase was being unfair, and she pointed out that he had nowhere else to go. "I would rather take my chances out there than stay in here with someone who's gonna judge me for what my dad did. You guys can go to hell!" Chase spat as he headed out of the house. "Okay, you know what? You're right. No one wants you here, anyway!" Ciara shouted at Chase as he slammed the door behind him.
At Hope's house, Rafe talked Hope out of asking Shawn to conduct a forensic investigation, reasoning that getting him involved would put him in a very bad position. Hope insisted that she and Rafe had to do something to stop Andre, and Rafe read between the lines and protested that they couldn't take Andre out. "Then you give me options! Give me options, because I can't -- and I won't -- live in this kind of fear. Not anymore. Andre has to be stopped -- end of story," Hope maintained.
At the DiMera mansion, Andre gleefully monitored Hope and Rafe, entertaining himself with a mocking narration of the dialogue that was likely being exchanged on their end. Andre was surprised, however, when Hope, after a sudden epiphany, began frantically searching the living room -- and soon found and destroyed his surveillance camera.
A short time later, Hope and Rafe barged into the DiMera mansion, ignoring Harold's attempts to stop them. As Hope and Rafe searched for Andre, Harold tiredly explained that, earlier that night, Andre had packed some things and left in a hurry. Hope was skeptical, but Harold added that the mansion was in foreclosure, and everyone had been ordered to vacate the premises before the end of the following night.
Hope and Rafe left once they were satisfied that Harold was telling the truth. Rafe hoped that the fire had been Andre's parting shot, but Hope was sure that it had been just the beginning of Andre's revenge.
On Valentine's Day at Club TBD, Doug and Julie looked over the collection of photographs that Julie had gathered for the Salem bicentennial celebration before she had to return the borrowed ones to their owners. Julie asserted that Valentine's Day made people understand the power of love, even when things weren't going well in their lives. The Williamses joked about Mickey's sideburns in Maggie and Mickey's wedding photo but agreed that they had been very happy together until Mickey's death. Julie remarked that Valentine's Day made people, especially older people, remember the good times -- and look forward to a bright future.
Julie was surprised when Doug disappeared later. Wondering why her husband had gone, Julie assumed that Doug found Valentine's Day depressing. As Julie began packing the photos, a jazzy number began to play, and Doug did a little soft-shoe as he crept up behind Julie with a bouquet of roses and baby's breath, which he surprised her with. Beaming, Julie declared that the flowers were beautiful. "Just like you, fair lady. Prettier than the day we met," Doug proclaimed. Julie set the flowers on the table with the pictures so she and Doug could dance.
Out of the blue, Julie suggested that she and Doug should go away again, right away, to somewhere warm. Doug wondered why she'd mentioned that on Valentine's Day. "I don't know. I just got such a terrible chill," Julie said a bit anxiously. Doug retrieved her wrap from the back of a chair.
At Daniel and Nicole's apartment, an insistent pounding at the door sent an annoyed Nicole to answer it. A deliveryman presented Nicole with an enormous bouquet of pink and red roses, freesia, gladiolus, and other flowers. Fighting her emotions, Nicole asked where the card was, since she didn't know who'd sent them. "No card. Dude wrote a letter," the deliveryman said, handing Nicole an envelope and explaining that the sender had ordered the flowers months earlier. Nicole reluctantly took the flowers and shut the door.
After setting the bouquet on a table, Nicole opened the letter. When she saw that it was from Daniel, Nicole sat down to read it. Daniel's letter began, "Come on, just because we're getting married today, did you really think I'd blow off Valentine's Day?" Nicole scrunched up her mouth in an unsuccessful attempt to keep from crying, as Daniel promised not to take their relationship or their love for granted, and to show her every day that she was loved. "Every beat of my heart will always be for you. I love you so much," the letter concluded.
Unable to keep the weeping at bay, Nicole lay on the couch in a fetal position, clutching a pillow under her head, and sobbed. Moments later, she was in the cemetery at Daniel's grave, his headstone dusted in snow. As she sat on a bench and dried her tears, she heard Daniel's voice, echoing as he called her name over and over. Nicole looked around doubtfully, but there was no sign of Daniel. She wiped away her tears and hurried away -- but when she arrived back at the apartment, she could still hear the reverberating voice.
Tortured, Nicole cried, "Stop! Daniel, don't do this to me." She heard Daniel's voice again but without the echo from out in the hallway, so she opened the door. Daniel appeared, and Nicole fainted. Daniel caught her and placed her on the couch. "But I thought you -- we just buried you," a puzzled Nicole pointed out. His form aglow, Daniel confirmed that he was dead, but he'd returned because there were still things he needed to tell her.
Ghost Daniel declared, "I'm worried about you. You are a life force, and that is what I love about you." He added that although he couldn't rejoin the living, Nicole had to. "I want to be with you!" Nicole cried. Daniel encouraged Nicole to let him go and live her life to the fullest, because to do otherwise would be to deprive the world of the magnificent woman he'd fallen in love with. "I meant what I said: every beat of my heart will always be for you," Daniel assured her. Nicole managed a weak smile as she reached out her hand and placed her palm on Daniel's chest. They shared a deep, lingering kiss -- and when Nicole opened her eyes, Daniel's apparition had vanished.
Nicole inhaled sharply as she awakened, exactly where she'd fallen asleep on the sofa. She looked around the room wistfully, clearly wishing Daniel were still there.
At Theresa and Brady's condo, a sleepy Theresa rolled over to snuggle with Brady but found his side of the bed empty. Her brows knitted a little in puzzlement as she dozed off again. Theresa dreamed of stumbling out of Horton Square into the park, her arms laden with shopping bags, which she dropped, along with her smoothie. When Brady rounded the corner and headed for the puddle, Theresa called out to "Mister Black" to watch out so he didn't slip. She followed after him and caught him before he fell.
"What if you'd hurt yourself? What if your wedding had been ruined by a little nobody like me?" Theresa fretted, staring up at Brady with her huge eyes. "Oh, you are not a little nobody," Brady assured her firmly. He got a phone call just then about a problem with the wedding and had to rush off to handle it -- but as he left, he looked back at Theresa.
A little later, Brady had donned his tuxedo, as had Victor, who declared that Brady and Nicole belonged together -- words Victor had never thought he'd utter. Victor added that he would grant Nicole's request to fire the new maid, Theresa.
Soon, an obviously upset Theresa was in street clothes and carrying a suitcase as she rushed through Horton Square. She paused when she noticed the arch-shaped trellis that had been set up and festooned with flower garlands for Brady and Nicole's wedding. Suddenly, Brady called Theresa's name and ran breathlessly up to her. When Brady asked Theresa to stay there with him, she assumed that he meant as a maid, but he quickly disabused her of that notion. "I love you. I want to marry you!" Brady declared. A thrilled Theresa cried, "Yes!" and she and Brady kissed under the arbor.
Theresa awakened to Brady gently caressing her arm. He said he'd just called every florist in town, but all he'd been able to find was a single long-stemmed red rose, which he gave to Theresa with an apology for forgetting Valentine's Day. Theresa burst into tears and explained that she'd just had a dream that she wasn't good enough for Brady and that she was going to lose him. "Baby, I'm right here," Brady reassured her, kissing her.
At the bed and breakfast, Abigail awoke and looked around for Chad and saw that he'd fallen asleep in the rocking chair with baby Thomas in his arms. When Abigail went back to sleep, she dreamed that she and Chad had moved into the DiMera mansion. They were in the study when Chad presented Abigail with a locket on Valentine's Day. He apologized for the way he'd previously treated Abigail, but she assured him that was in the past. "That was the other Chad," she asserted.
At Chad's request, Abigail turned the locket over and saw that it was engraved with the words, "A love like ours comes once in a lifetime." Touched, Abigail kissed Chad. A delighted Abigail left to check on Thomas before she started making "an amazing dinner" for Chad. Chad grinned at her retreating form. As Chad went to the bar to pour himself a drink, his black-clad doppelgänger appeared in the doorway. "That single-malt must taste damn good right about now," Chad's double drawled.
Chad didn't seem surprised to see his look-alike, who reminded Chad, "I go everywhere you go. You should know that by now." Dark Chad grabbed Chad by the back of the neck and sneered, "Who is the true DiMera here? I get everything you get. By the way, how was that drink?" Suddenly woozy, Chad fell to the floor, facedown. He awakened in a small concrete room and began pounding on the door, shouting for evil Chad to let him out.
Wearing Chad's clothes, Chad's alter ego let himself back into the study via a secret doorway, just as Abigail returned and happily announced that dinner was almost ready. Producing a document from a side table, ersatz Chad declared that first, Abigail had to sign a pre-nup. Abigail was baffled, but fake Chad asserted that he had to protect the legacy of his "grand family." As she looked over the agreement, Abigail reminded her supposed fiancé that she'd fallen in love with him even though he was a DiMera and could become one again.
Abigail calmly returned the document to bogus Chad and instructed him to prove he hadn't turned back into a DiMera by ripping it up -- and elope with her as he'd promised. Shaking his head, sham Chad refused. "My place is here, and if you loved me, you'd realize your place is right here beside me," he said firmly. Abigail coolly acquiesced. She retrieved two filled wine glasses from the bar and gave one to Chad's double. "To my love, my prized possession," facsimile Chad toasted. As he drank, Abigail lifted her glass to her lips but did not imbibe.
Almost immediately, counterfeit Chad keeled over. Grabbing his face and forcing him to look at her, Abigail avowed, "I am nobody's possession." She demanded to know where Chad was, but dark Chad scathingly maintained that Abigail would never find Chad -- who didn't deserve her. Abigail soon found her genuine fiancé and freed him from imprisonment. After the relieved pair embraced, Chad breathlessly vowed, "There's a guy -- he looks just like me, okay? But that'll never be me. I promise you, that'll never be me." "I'm going to hold you to that," Abigail said, and the two kissed.
Chad quietly crawled back into bed with Abigail, who awakened and hugged him gratefully. Chad noted that Abigail had been talking in her sleep. Abigail explained that she'd been dreaming, and in the dream, Chad had said, "A love like ours..." "Comes once in a lifetime," Chad finished. Abigail asked how he'd known that. "'Cause it's true," Chad replied. They kissed, and things quickly turned passionate.
As Ava was sleeping, her dreams became black and white. Steve burst through the door of her room and shouted, "Kayla's leaving me, you crazy bitch!" He grabbed Ava violently and continued, "She's going to tell Joe everything, and I'm going to lose her and my son because of you!" Ava gleefully pointed out that there was no longer anything standing in the way of her and Steve being together. She suggested, "If there's still time, you can make sure that she doesn't tell anybody anything -- ever." Ava pointed out that Steve had always said he would do anything to keep Joey in his life. "Now you can decide whether 'anything' means murder," Ava concluded.
Steve and Ava were waiting in his living room when Kayla arrived. "You know what to do?" Ava asked, and Steve headed for the bedroom. Kayla entered the house and ordered Ava to leave. When Ava declined, Kayla declared, "If Steve can't keep his pants up around a lying psycho bitch like you, he can have you." Kayla predicted that Ava wouldn't be happy without Joey or Kayla to torment. As Kayla continued baiting Ava, Steve returned, carrying a revolver aimed squarely at Kayla's head.
"Shut her up!" Ava ordered, and Kayla turned toward Steve then turned back to Ava with an unconcerned look. Frustrated, Ava charged over to Steve and demanded with quiet fury, "Do I have to do everything?" Meanwhile, Kayla had gotten a pistol out of a drawer and aimed it at Ava. "Surprise!" Kayla yelled. Ava tried to shoot Kayla first, but the revolver wasn't loaded. "I don't know about you, but I feel threatened," Kayla said lightly to Steve, who replied, "Go for it." Kayla fired a bullet into Ava's heart. Kayla celebrated Ava's death by dropping the gun and kissing Steve.
Steve and Kayla woke up snuggled together on the couch as the sky grew light outside. Kayla asked if Steve had watched the end of the movie. "I did, and I had sweet dreams all night long," Steve said, though the worry was evident in his eyes.
While Ciara dozed on Jennifer's sofa, she dreamed that she was narrating her own biographical movie. She showed the viewers around town and introduced herself. "Ciara's an Irish name. When I looked it up, it said that it meant 'saint' or 'dark.' Go figure!" As she walked around the square, she said she'd reached puberty "literally overnight." She continued that she was actually two people: the saintly one and the dark one.
As her movie changed location to Jennifer's house, Ciara stated that she and Theo had bonded as children because they'd both been weird little kids who'd had cops for parents, and his mom and her dad had both died of cancer. Theo showed up with a heart-shaped pizza. Ciara narrated Chase's part of the story: "It seems like yesterday we were just in the fourth grade!" Ciara admitted that Theo and Chase were nothing alike -- and Chase scared her a little, and she kind of liked it.
"With Theo, I'm a saint. With Chase, well, I'm dark -- and they're both me," Ciara explained. In her movie, she was dressed in a black leather sleeveless dress. She admitted that she was having trouble keeping the two sides of herself straight. "It's like, I know who I'm supposed to be, but what I want is to be the opposite of that. I guess I'll figure it out, but I hope it's soon, 'cause I'm kinda freaking out here!" Ciara howled as the two guys in her life pulled her in different directions. Ciara awoke with a start and looked around the room in confusion.
Rafe was at his desk in the police station, pondering a file labeled, "Stefano DiMera Murder." Suddenly, Rafe was sitting across the chessboard in the DiMera study from Andre, who promised to tell Rafe where Hope was if he beat Andre in a game of chess. Bewildered, Rafe saw that the board had identical copies of Stefano's pinkie ring in place of every playing piece. Meanwhile, Hope was handcuffed in a dungeon and calling out for Rafe. After Andre and Rafe moved their chess "men" just a few times, Andre declared, "Checkmate."
Rafe suggested they play again, but when he looked back at the board, the pieces had been replaced with a gun. He spun the gun like a roulette wheel, but Andre fled. Rafe arrived at the Horton house, where Andre was holding Hope with a gun to her throat and taunting her. Hope got free and ran toward Rafe. A furious Andre shot her and ran out of the house. Rafe held a wounded, semi-conscious Hope in his arms and pleaded with her, "Please, don't let go. Please. I love you." Hope opened her eyes and murmured, "You didn't let me down. Happy Valentine's Day." At his desk, Rafe jerked awake and realized when he looked at his calendar that he'd forgotten it was Valentine's Day.
In the square later, Julie admitted to Doug that, earlier, she'd started to think about what her life would be like if she lost him. "Sweetheart, I'm not going anyplace," Doug assured her. They kissed and wandered happily away.
Abigail and Chad walked into the square, pushing Thomas in his stroller. Hope and Rafe strode in, each carrying a cup of coffee. Ciara and Theo exited the frozen yogurt shop, laughing and enjoying their yogurts. Steve and Kayla sat at a table to drink coffee, while Brady and Theresa strolled through the square, arm-in-arm. Nicole emerged, alone, from Hourglass Bookstore. As she looked around the square at all the happy couples, she began to weep, but she heard Daniel's voice in her head, reminding her, "Every beat of my heart will always be for you. I love you."
